Ed Sheeran has been named the world’s best-selling artist of 2017. IFPI, who represent the global recorded music industry, has made the announcement, which comes as no real surprise after the outstanding success of ÷ (Divide), Sheeran’s third studio album.

Featuring hit singles, ‘Shape of You’, ‘Castle on the Hill’, ‘Galway Girl’ and ‘Perfect’, in the months following its release, it was difficult to escape the release regardless of where you travelled in the world. Released back in March 2017, ‘÷’ was the global best-selling album of last year and has been officially certified as multi-Platinum winning in 36 markets.

‘Shape of You’ has also won the global best-selling single accolade for 2017, which is the first time an artist has secured both the best-selling album and single of the year. In 2017, ‘Shape of You’ also became the most streamed song ever on Spotify. Having gained over 1.6 billion streams to date (27/02/18), Sheeran’s Spotify statistics continue to grow rapidly. With just under 19 million direct followers and over 150 million total playlist followers, Ed Sheeran is the number 1 artist on Spotify (TalentAI).

IFPI Chief Executive, Frances Moore, commented on the announcement: "It's wonderful to be able to announce Ed Sheeran as the IFPI Global Recording Artist 2017. The success Ed has achieved is astonishing and testament to his ability to write and perform songs that connect with a truly global fanbase.”

"This year's Global Top 10 really is a 'who's who' of popular music. Each artist has a unique impact on the music industry through the talent and energy they are channelling through their work. I congratulate them all for such a successful year."

According to IFPI, their ‘Global Recording Artist of the Year Award and top 10 chart’ “was the first, and remains the only, ranking to accurately capture the engagement with artists across audio streaming channels, alongside digital and physical album and singles sales on a global basis.”

The official top 10 global recording artists of 2017 are:

Ed Sheeran

Drake

Taylor Swift

Kendrick Lamar

Eminem

Bruno Mars

The Weeknd

Imagine Dragons

Linkin Park

The Chainsmokers

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